Public Hearings Next Week

On Wednesday, April 20, at 6 p.m., the Zoning Board of Appeals holds its public hearing on the project proposed by Galvan Partners for the corner of Union and First streets. Last Wednesday, the Planning Commission offered its advisory opinion that the project would not constitute an undesirable change to the neighborhood and would not have an adverse impact on any of the neighboring properties. Immediately after the public hearing, at its regular meeting at 7 p.m., the ZBA will decide whether or not to grant the project the area variances it needs, which have to do with setbacks and amount of lot area taken up by structures.

On Thursday, April 21, at 6 p.m., the Historic Preservation Commission holds a public hearing on the designation of Robinson Street and the adjacent parts of Second and Third streets as a historic district. Although both sides of Warren Street and most of the south side of the city became a National Register historic district in 1983 and were locally designated as historic districts in 2006, very few of the neighborhoods on the north side of the city enjoy such protection. In 2003, the houses at 37-47 North Fifth Street were added to the National Register of Historic Places, and in 2006, Fifth Street north of State Street and the adjacent streets became the locally designed Armory Historic District. Robinson Street would be the first historic district in the Second Ward.  

Designating Robinson Street, a unique neighborhood in Hudson of 19th-century working-class houses that survived the destruction of Urban Renewal in the 1970s, is an initiative of Historic Hudson. When the organization made its presentation to the Historic Preservation Commission on February 11, strong objection was voiced by Ed Cross, longtime supervisor for the Second Ward and a homeowner on Robinson Street. Since it was announced that the HPC is considering the designation, both opposition and support have been heard from property owners in the neighborhood, so there is likely to be some discord and debate at the public hearing. At its May meeting, the HPC will consider the comments and decide whether or not to recommend the designation to the Common Council for final approval.

At 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, prior to the public hearing, the HPC will hold a special meeting to consider a certificate of appropriateness for 557 Warren Street. The plans for restoring the facade of this building were approved several years ago, but the certificate of appropriateness has lapsed, and a new application has been submitted. The image below is a screen grab, provided by HPC chair Tom Swope, from the plans that have been submitted for the project.   

Facade design by Wolfgang Stockmeier for Quadrille